Tars in the trenches

Barry Faulkner

You won’t find them at the same lunch table and they don’t go to

the movies together on weekends. But, positioned about arm’s length apart

as the Newport Harbor High offensive line, Blair Jones, Steve Wukawitz,

Luis Cruz, Nick Haddy and Robert Cole have forged a singular identity in

the school’s 69-season football history.

Sailors offensive line coach Zach Biehl, who at 22 plans to coach at

least three decades into the new millennium, realizes he may never have a

more dedicated and talented unit.

“It’s hard to imagine anything better,” Biehl said of the senior quintet

which helped the unbeaten Tars advance to Friday’s CIF Southern Section

Division VI title showdown with Sea View League rival Irvine. “It’s my

first group (as the sole varsity O-line coach) and it’s special. I

started with these guys on the freshman level, so I’ve been with them for

four years. It’s been an emotional run and, now, it’s hard to imagine

anything but winning the whole thing.”

The Sailors (12-0-1) haven’t lost with this group -- averaging 6-foot-3

1/2, 246 pounds -- breaking the huddle. And though sophomore Bryan

Breland will replace Cole against Irvine, after the senior right tackle

broke his right leg in a 49-0 semifinal win over Kennedy, these diverse

hole-punching heroes are overdue for a well-deserved bow.

Harbor Coach Jeff Brinkley, as well as record-setting tailback Andre

Stewart, have identified the offensive front as a catalyst all season.

But, as spectators and media focus their Friday night spotlight on the

ball, the neutral zone often blurs into the background.

“There is ego involved and we believe, every week, we’re the best

offensive line on the field,” Biehl said. “But our guys also buy into the

fact that the offensive line just doesn’t get a lot of press. They know

their parents are usually the only ones who know when they’re playing

well.”

The Sailors’ record-setting rushing proficiency, however, helps steer the

beam of recognition toward the trenches.

The Sea View League champions have rushed for nearly 3,700 yards -- more

than two miles -- this season. The total tops that of Harbor’s three

previous section finalists this decade and is believed to be a school

record.

Stewart, as the primary beneficiary, has set school records for

single-season yards (2,245), 100-yard games in a season (12, which also

ties a school career record), and single-game yards (310 against Laguna

Hills). He has also scored 25 touchdowns, the third-best single-season

mark among Sailors.

Brinkley credits cohesion, built on experience, as the foundation for the

offensive line’s success.

“There’s a lot of mutual respect among those guys,” Brinkley said. “They

obviously have some physical attributes, but they do a real good job with

the mental aspect, as well. They all seem to know what each other is

doing and they’re able to make adjustments.”

Biehl agrees that chemistry, aided by a preseason overnight camping trip

to San Onofre, is vital.

“Their personalities are all different and they don’t hang out together

off the field. But there is a bond,” said Biehl, who also marvels at the

group’s work ethic.

“I can’t think of a practice when these guys didn’t give 100% in every

single drill.”

Senior tight end Nick Langsdorf (one reception in 13 games) and junior

fullback Travis Trimble (15 carries for 46 yards all season) have earned

their honorary linemen distinction. And the blocking of the receiving

corps has also helped the ground game flourish.

But here’s a closer look at those who have shouldered the load:

*Jones, a 6-8, 262-pound recruiting magnet, is so huge he demands two

nicknames.

Most of the time the affable left tackle is known as Jonesy. But when his

teammates are in a teasing mood, they call him Flash, a reference to the

media glare which has made him the most heralded member of the group.

Jones’ athleticism and size have made him the most coveted Division I

commodity Brinkley has had in 14 seasons at the school. He has scheduled

postseason recruiting trips to Washington, Cal, Michigan, Oregon, USC and

Colorado.

“He’s a very good athlete, who has gotten a lot tougher the last four

years,” Biehl said.

He had no football experience before high school, but he started some

varsity games as a sophomore and has been a fixture ever since. He was

All-Newport-Mesa District last fall.

“He’s a great learner and a great technician and he can be dominant.”

*Wukawitz, a returning starter known for his quiet intensity, is a

walking testament to the program’s emphasis on strength training. The

left guard, 5-11, 140 pounds as freshman, is now 6-2, 200 and the only

offensive lineman in the 1,200 club (the sum of the program’s four

different lifts).

Strength, technique and tenacity are his stock in trade.

“Wuka is a nut,” Biehl said. “When he gets on a guy, there’s no getting

him off. We have some videotape of him blocking guys 25 yards down the

field in the fourth quarter.”

Wukawitz is also related to the line’s most distinctive fan. His father,

Doug, a former two-way lineman at Estancia High, is the voice Sailor

supporters hear roaring “Come on, O-line!” from the stands at every game.

*Cruz, a 5-11, 205-pound center nicknamed Cruzer, is the nastiest of the

group.

“He’s the guy you have to watch to make sure he doesn’t go too far,” Cole

said of his fiery teammate, who helps overcome a frequent size

disadvantage with free-flowing adrenaline.

“He has the classic tough football player mentality and he just likes to

get after people,” Biehl said. “But he’s also very smart and he makes all

the line calls. His teammates trust him, because he always seems to get

the job done.”

A Jr. All-American Football veteran, Cruz relishes his reputation.

“I play football because I like knocking people down,” he said.

*Haddy, a 6-3, 257-pound right guard nicknamed Hadder, has had a fairy

tale prep career, according to Biehl.

“He’s probably the guy I’m most proud of,” Biehl said. “As a freshman, he

showed up for the second practice with ace bandages loosely wrapped

around both legs, claiming he couldn’t practice because he had two torn

hamstrings. Every day he came back, I wondered if it would be his last.

He was seventh string and didn’t even play in reserve games. But he

didn’t quit.

“(Newport strength coach Mike) Bargas got ahold of him after his freshman

year and he started getting stronger, working harder and improving.

“He was a pretty good JV player for us last year and he’s become a big

surprise for us this year. He’s a great kid and a great tribute to the

program.”

A devastating trap blocker, Haddy is responsible for some of the most

violent collisions in the trenches this season.

“He just crushes guys,” Biehl said.

Haddy, whose sense of humor is appreciated by his teammates, thoroughly

appreciates his role on this team.

“I’m very fortunate to be around guys with so much talent,” he said.

“After the Woodbridge game, when we clinched the league’s top playoff

spot, he was crying,” Biehl said. “I asked if he was hurt, but he said he

just couldn’t believe he’d come this far.”

*Cole, a 6-5, 325-pounder, was nicknamed Big Daddy, as much for his

leadership as his physique. Like Jones, he is one of five captains.

He began his streak of 24 straight starts in the 1997 CIF semifinals, but

his surgically repaired leg will allow him to offer only moral support

against Irvine.

“He’s the chief, sort of the elder statesman of the group,” Biehl said.

“He has a 4.4 GPA and he’s as smart a football player as you’ll ever

see.”

Before the Kennedy game, Cole said he wanted to play football and study

medicine at an Ivy League school. He wants to specialize in orthopedics.

At Harbor, however, he was more an agent of destruction than a healer.

“He’s extremely strong and powerful,” Biehl said. “We teach a punch

technique (striking an opponent’s upper torso with open palms) and

Robert, when he was pass blocking, would often knock his guy to the

ground just with his punch.”

Cole, in fact, was far and away the team leader with more than 110

pancake blocks (knocking an opponent to his back). A gentle soul without

a helmet, his aggressiveness helped mold the group’s reputation for

physical play.